Transparency Germany, an anti-corruption NGO, together with the Maecenata Foundation think tank have criticized the administration of the German state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania for setting up the Stiftung Klimaschutz foundation. The organizations also accused the new institution of political abuse of the name of other foundations. The organization was supposed to protect Nord Stream 2 against the possible American sanctions. In a response to questions from BiznesAlert.pl, Transparency Germany explained its position and provided some details on the issue.
Transparency Germany about Stiftung Klimaschutz
Transparency Germany has stressed that foundations should be politically independent and devoted to charitable goals. However, the main concern about the foundation established in Schwerin are the business dealings of a Russian state-owned company. „This decision plays with the credibility of many charities and non-governmental organizations,” Sonja Grolig, board member of Transparency Germany, said.
It is very questionable whether the foundation does serve its stated goals, which are climate and environment protection. Actually, it seems reasonable to assume that the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania government would try to circumvent the American sanctions on companies that are engaged in the construction of the highly controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. The state-owned Gazprom participates in the foundation via its daughter company Nord-Stream 2 AG, which contributed EUR 20 million to the organization. In return the Russian state giant is to receive wide decision-making powers. Allegedly the foundation will perform the construction work necessary to finish the pipeline, which had been made impossible because the private companies hired to do this withdrew fearing U.S. sanctions. Regardless of how the solution proposed by the local government is to be judged from the point of view of environmental policy, or whether it is even legal, Transparency Germany claims that the new foundation undermines the credibility of civil society and its many independent foundations, as well as other organizations that are truly engaged in working towards achieving great goals.
We asked Transparency Germany how Stiftung Klimaschutz could specifically protect Nord Stream 2 AG’s interests. „The Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state and the Russian state giant Gazprom set up a foundation whose official mission is to support climate and environmental protection. However, its true goal is to protect the construction of Nord Stream 2 against U.S. sanctions. So far the U.S. administration has imposed sanctions only on private companies that contributed to the construction of Nord Stream 2. To replace the private contractors, the foundation will run a so-called Geschäftsbetrieb (business), that will build important sections of the pipeline to complete the project. Finally, the owners of the foundation are speculating that the American administration won’t impose sanctions – or at least not immediately – on the foundation, as its co-founder is a German state,” the organization explained.
„The two factors below clearly show that the true – or actually the only significant – goal of the foundation is to protect Nord Stream 2 against U.S. sanctions. First, The Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state already has a foundation that supports the protection of climate and environment. The Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania state Court of Auditors pointed out that establishing double structures may cause additional costs without any real benefits. Second, Gazprom contributed EUR 20 million to the foundation, which is 90 percent of its entire capital. It looks like in return Gazprom received wide competencies, such as the power to appoint an executive business director that will directly organize and carry out construction work to complete the pipeline. Finally, a wide range of entities, including NGOs that deal with environmental protection, the independent research institute Deutsches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, as well as the European Investment Bank have all stressed that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is a step back for climate protection,” Transparency said in reply to BiznesAlert.pl’s questions.
We also enquired about the credibility of Stiftung Klimaschutz. „The recently established Stiftung Klimaschutz foundation is a serious threat to the reputation of all of the sectors of the civil society. The foundation and its founders abuse climate protection by using it as a disguise to protect economic and political interests related to the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Misleading the public opinion about the foundation’s true intentions is very problematic, especially if its goal is to contribute to the pursuit of a public cause, such as climate or environmental protection. This is unfair and causes distrust, and it also puts at risk the reputation of the entire civil society sector. In result many foundations and organizations of the civil society, which truly promote public causes, may encounter wrongful beliefs about their intentions and trustworthiness. This contributes to complicating the valuable work of NGOs, during a time when the sector needs to recover after the coronavirus pandemic,” Transparency Germany argued.